


Crimson and Azul

by TheLOAD



Series: Ryan The Dragon [5]
Category: Red vs. Blue, Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF, Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Dragons, Gen, Kingverse, dragon - Freeform, minecraft au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-03
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2019-01-08 11:41:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12253713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLOAD/pseuds/TheLOAD
Summary: Trouble is brewing in far off kingdoms, and Geoff, his hand Jack, and his dragon knight Ryan must find a way to stop it.





	1. Prologue

“What do you need?” The King asked, leaning forward. The King wasn’t a large man, was shorter and leaner than his Hand, but there was a hardness about him. The hair on the sides of his head was cut short, the top was longer and slicked back, and his gown was a steely grey trimmed with orange.

By his side stood his Hand, a large, broad man, with grey and green armor and a his hair pulled back tight. A pair of scars crisscrossed on his face.

Before them stood the Director, the once mighty sorcerer having fallen on hard times.

“Achievement Kingdom has gained the possession of a dragon,” the sorcerer said. “Two, in fact. The elder is a breed I could not identify, no matter how hard I tried, but the younger is an Elder Dragon, the offspring of my slain patron.

"That would explain why our raiders failed,” the Hand spoke, turning to the King. The King leaned forward, stroking his chin.

“I’m still not sure what you want,” he said. “Yes, I would love nothing more than to expand my kingdom, but I hardly see where you come into play. Unless you expect me to give you something.”

“Resources,” the Director said. “A place to work. If you let me, I could help you destroy the dragons once and for all.” The King sat back, folding his hands in front of him, and pondered this for a moment. Achievement Kingdom would certainly be easier to crush and conquer if their dragon was taken out of the picture.

“Resources, you say?” The King asked. “Now, that sounds like it would cost me a lot. Why should I accept your offer, when I could just have my own mages set to work on a solution?”

“Because I know the beasts!” The Director insisted, growing desperate. The King before him was not known for his mercy. “Your mages are ignorant of their temperaments, of their minds. I…”

“…am sure they could figure it out,” the King finished for him, before motioning for his guards to seize the Director. The man stepped back, magic crackling to his fingertips as he prepared an attack…

…only to have it die away as a crossbow bolt pierced his heart, killing him almost instantly.

“Thank you, Locus,” the King said to his hand as the man lowered his weapon.

“My honor, King Felix,” the Hand replied.


	2. Crimson

"Is this it?" Ryan asked, looking up at the wall. It seemed shoddily built, like it had been built, destroyed, then rebuilt again, and was decorated with red banners and markings, most of which made little sense to Ryan.

"It is," Geoff confirmed. "Welcome to the Kingdom of Crimson. Less of a shithole than the Kingdom of Azul."

"How do we get in?" Ryan asked. Geoff frowned, looked around, and his frown deepened. It didn't look as though there were any doors or gates, and where there had been doors and gates, there was only recently built wall.

"Damn it, Sarge," Geoff muttered. "Crazy old bastard blocked off his entire kingdom."

"Have the wars gotten that bad?" Jack asked. "Or the raiders?" He knew well enough that Cainyan had its share of issues, but contact with them was infrequent, and there had been no word of the conflicts which tended to plague the region had gotten _that_ bad.

"No," Geoff said. "If they are, it's only in Sarge's mind."

"Who's Sarge?" Ryan asked.

"Their king," Jack replied. He looked over the walls another time. "Maybe we could scale them?" Geoff considered, then brightened for a moment.

"We don't have to," he said, heading off and motioning for the pair to follow him. "Come on. We'll tie our horses up, then we're heading over."

\----

Ryan beat his wings, angling himself into the wind so that he could more easily stay in one place as Geoff scanned over the kingdom wall.

"Where should we land, Geoff?" Jack asked. Ryan growled in agreement, scanning the area as well, and not feeling overly convinced by this plan. Personally, he just wanted to land over the wall, change back, then continue to the king as a man. In his experience people tended to react poorly to dragons. Even those he currently called friends had assumed the worst in the beginning.

"Fly towards the center building," Geoff said at last. "That should be where Sarge is." Ryan gave a low growl and beat his wings, pushing himself forward and towards the building. He was almost upon it when a rock came hurtling towards him, and he just barely managed to stall in time to avoid being hit.

"Reload!" A man in red armor with a crown shouted to his men, and they scrambled to get another rock into the catapult.

"Damn it, Sarge!" Geoff yelled. "Okay Ryan, I need you to bring us down while also dodging boulders. Think you can do that?"

Ryan growled something that roughly translated into 'go fuck yourself, Geoff' but he flew down anyway, dodging the boulders as they came. Fortunately, it wasn't far to dive, and it took a while to reload the catapult. As soon as he touched down Geoff and Jack were off his back, and Ryan had shifted back.

"Sarge it's me!" Geoff yelled. "Geoff!"

"Geoff?" The other king asked, his accent something that Ryan didn't know how to place, nor was he even going to try. "Hold your fire, men!" He yelled to two men, one in a sort of maroon armor while the other whose orange armor could easily be mistaken for yellow tried to reload and turn the catapult. They stopped immediately, slumping back.

"Geoff, what are you doing here? And with a dragon no less?" He looked towards Ryan, scrutinizing him. "How did you manage to catch a dragon? Everyone knows you can't."

"I actually have two now," Geoff said, boastful. "This one is named Ryan."

"This one?" Ryan asked. "Geoff I'm one of your knights."

"Hmm," Sarge hummed thoughtfully. "A dragon knight, huh? Simmons, make a note of that. Azul doesn't have a dragon." The man in maroon armor made a note of his king's words, while Sarge turned back to Geoff. "What brings you here, Geoff?"

"We had issues with raiders," Geoff said. "And they were wearing this," he motioned towards himself and Sarge, "armor. We figured we'd pay you all a visit, to see if we can't find the source of it. So, have any troubles lately."

"None," Sarge confessed. "Even Azul has been quiet. Unless they were quiet because they were planning something, and this is it!"

"I don't think that's it, Sarge," Geoff said quickly, not wanting to start anything between the two kingdoms. Sarge was always looking for a reason to go to war with the Kingdom of Azul.

"We should still probably check, Geoff," Jack said. "I don't think they're behind it either, but they've been changing kings a lot recently, and in the chaos things could be slipping through. They didn't send the raiders, but they may have started up in their kingdom."

"Hmm," Sarge hummed thoughtfully. "I'm not sure I trust Azul, but your hand may be right. They've gone through, what? Three to five leaders in less than fifteen years? I think they may even have a Queen now. Who knows what could be going on in their kingdom, without proper leadership."

"We'll check it out," Geoff said. Ryan shifted back into a dragon, and Jack and Geoff climbed onto his back. "Thanks for your help."

\----

"And you're sure you'll be able to solve our dragon problem?" Felix asked, watching the knight in front of him. She wore the same sort of armor everyone in Cainyan wore, though hers was dyed a deep black, the same color as obsidian. If Felix had to bet, it was probably reinforced with it.

"I think I can manage," the woman said, cracking her knuckles. "I've dealt with them before, I can definitely deal with this one."

"He's a guardian, from what we understand," Locus said, stepping forward. "A young one, but all the same. They're some of the most powerful dragons alive." The woman smiled, unworried by this information.

"Then it's a good thing I'm the best soldier around."


	3. The Azuls

“Hopefully we’ll get a warmer welcome here,” Jack said. Geoff just scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“I wouldn’t bet on it,” he said. “To be honest, I’m not even sure who the king is anymore. I think Church may have died a few years back, but I’m not sure.”

“You’re not sure?” Jack asked. “What the hell is going on in this kingdom?”

“I don’t know, man, let’s just land.”

Ryan let out an affirmative growl and angled his wings, flying down to land near the castle. Unlike Crimson, this kingdom wasn’t walled in like its ruler was expecting an attack on all sides.

“Identify yourselves,” a man in grey said. Behind him, suiting the name of the kingdom, were men in blue armor.

“I’m King Geoff, of Achievement Kingdom,” Geoff said, getting down off of Ryan. “This is my Hand Jack, and my knight, Ryan.” Geoff frowned, looking at the man. “You’re not Church.”

“I’m not,” the man confirmed. “My name is King Washington, Wash for short. King Church unfortunately left us,” Geoff muttered a ‘told you’ to Jack and Ryan, “and I’ve been the king ever since. How can we help you?”

“Our kingdom was attacked by raiders,” Geoff explained. “Their armor shows that they came from these kingdoms. We thought we would look around, see what we can find.”

Wash looked uncertain for a moment, before turning and motioning for his soldiers to follow him. Ryan growled, growing tense,not liking this one bit. Honestly, he hadn’t liked any of these kingdoms so far. Something was happening in this area, something wrong, and whatever it is it was big, and bleeding into everywhere else.

“I know,” Geoff said, patting the dragon’s leg. “I don’t like any of this either. These kingdoms were always odd but now, they’re a fucking mess. Shit’s really hit the fan.”

Finally Wash and the others came back, looking troubled. “We think we know where you should look,” Wash said. “Lately there has been a lot of activity happening in Chorus. The new king, Felix his name is, something’s not right with him. If anyone is the cause behind your troubles, it’s probably him or his people. I would head to Chorus next.”

“Thank you,” Geoff said, climbing back onto Ryan’s back before helping Jack up as well. “We’ll let you know if we learn anything.”

“Thank you,” Wash said. “And good luck. I fear you may need it.” They took off, flying away from the kingdom before landing in the forest.

“I don’t like this,” Jack said. “I don’t trust any of this.”

“Neither to I,” Ryan said, once he had shifted back into his human form. “This whole thing seems like a shitshow.”

“It is,” Geoff said. “We’re here to make sure it stops bleeding into our kingdom.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” a voice said. They turned, and saw a woman standing there in black armor. “After I take care of your pet, everyone should stop carrying about your kingdom.


	4. Tex

“Who are you?” Geoff asked, drawing his sword. Beside him Jack and Ryan did the same. “What do you want, who hired you?”

“That would be telling,” the woman said, before drawing her own sword and lunging, clearly aiming for Ryan. Geoff caught her blade with his own, and Jack moved in for a strike, but before his blade could find its mark she broke away from Geoff, delivering a kick to the king’s gut, and met Jack’s blade with her own.

“It’s nothing personal,” she said. “Just let me take care of the dragon and we can be done with this.”

“Fuck no,” Jack said. “Why would we let you just kill Ryan?” Ryan for his part had decided to give up on sword fighting, and was in the process of shifting back into a dragon.

The woman watched as this happened, and Jack and Geoff both realized she was going to make a move. The dragon was at his most vulnerable when he was changing shape, caught between one and the other, and surely someone who was hired to hunt a dragon would know this. They glanced at each other before crossing their swords to block her path.

It worked, but only for a second. She managed to break her way through their blockade, though she did lose her sword in the process. Instead she pulled out a crossbow and fired, the bolt managing to pierce Ryan’s soft, halfway scales. The dragon roared and ripped the bolt out before finishing his change and turning on her, fire smoking from his mouth.

She held up the sword and stood her ground as he charged. He moved in to grab her around the middle with her jaws, but she dodged out of the way, slashing him across his muzzle. He snarled, pawed at the wound, before slashing at her with his talons, managing to cut through the armor, though he didn’t meet flesh.

“We have to help him,” Geoff said, steadying himself before rushing forward, with Jack following. Just as the woman jumped back to dodge Ryan’s claws Geoff’s sword managed to catch against the small of her back, though even with the enchantment it failed to slice through the armor.

But it gave Ryan an edge, and while the woman was distracted he lunged, managing to pin her to the ground.

“Okay you fuck,” Geoff said, aiming his sword at her. “Who are you, and why did you come after Ryan? Who the hell hired you?”

“Why would I tell you?” The woman asked. “Why would I tell you any of that?”

“Because Ryan will eat you if you don’t,” Geoff said, which earned a look from Ryan. “Well, maybe not eat, but he can bite you in half, all right, so start talking.”

“Fine,” the woman said. “My name is Tex. I was hired by King Felix to kill your pet. Don’t ask me why, I didn’t ask myself.”

“Felix?” Jack said. “The king of Chorus?”

“They did say troubling things were happening there…” Geoff muttered.

“Look, it was just a job,” the woman, Tex, said. “I don’t really care that much about killing your beast, so it you let me go, I’ll tell you everything I know about Chorus.” The trio exchanged a look, and Ryan moved off of her.

—-

After Tex had told them everything she knew, which was more than the other two kings had known, but still wasn’t a lot, they decided to let her go before sitting down to discuss the issue themselves.

“So it’s definitely Chorus then, right?” Ryan asked. “It has to be.”

“It looks like it,” Geoff agreed. “Which means, we’ll have to go there, then.”


	5. The King

Chorus was exactly what Ryan had come to expect from kingdoms, unlike Crimson and Azul. Here there were small towns and farms, and as one grew closer to the castle the larger the buildings and the towns became. After the chaos he had just witnessed, it was refreshing.

It was also troubling. All the evidence thus far was pointing to Chorus being behind the raids, but the kingdom seemed fine. Peaceful.

Something was clearly wrong with all of this.

“Ryan,” Geoff said, gaining the attention of the dragon. “I’m going to need you to keep a low profile while we’re here. No dragon business. If King Felix really did hire that slayer, I don’t want to give him an excuse to try and hire another.”

“Fine by me,” Ryan said. Everything about this was rubbing him the wrong way, and the less time they spent there, the happier he was.

“What do you think we should do, Geoff?” Jack asked. “Ask around, see if anyone has seen anything suspicious?”

“Honestly?” Geoff said. “I think we should just go straight to the source. I’m tired of sneaking around, I want to go straight to Felix, and see what he knows.”

“Better question,” Ryan said. “What do //we// know about //him?//” Geoff sighed, trying to think of how best to answer the question.

“The rumors aren’t good,” he confessed. “A few years ago, he became king of this place. Supposedly he took control of this kingdom by force, killing those who had ruled before him before naming himself king.”

“And the people just let him?” Ryan asked. “No one cared?” Geoff shrugged.

“They either didn’t care, or he killed all the ones who did. Could have been a little of both. //Some// may have cared, but were quickly taken care of, and the ones that were left couldn’t be asked to give a fuck.”

“We’ve had disputes lately with Chorus about some land we both lay claim to,” Jack brought up. “A few months back, this could all be retribution for that.”

“It could be,” Ryan said. “There’s also the chance, however unlikely, that he isn’t behind these attacks. That while they are coming from his kingdom, he didn’t send them.”

“There is,” Geoff agreed. “Which is why I think we should just approach him, no tricks, rather than asking everyone we meet questions, hoping to find the answers to what we’re looking for.”

“So to the castle, then?” Jack asked. Geoff nodded.

“We’re going to have to head to this bastard’s castle.”

Ryan was surprised when a pair of guards met them halfway to the castle, and actually escorted them the rest of the way. As they walked with the men, they fell back slightly so that they could talk.

“Those are definitely raiders,” Geoff said. “I recognize them from the battle.”

“Are you sure?” Jack asked. “Positive?” Geoff nodded.

“Absolutely,” he said.

“So the raiders are from here,” Ryan said. “Not only that, but they’re working directly for the king.”

“The question is,” Jack picked up, “is does the king know what his guards are doing, or is he clueless?”

“Only one way to find out,” Geoff said, as they came up to the castle, and King Felix and his Hand stepped out to greet them. “Confront the bastard about it himself.”

“Geoffrey,” Felix said, stepping up to them. “It’s so good to see you.” Geoff froze, looking at the other man.

“It is?” Geoff asked.

“Of course,” he said. “We heard you were on your way, and decided to throw a dinner in your honor. Please, come inside. We’ll show you to your quarters.”


	6. The Box

Jack and Geoff’s quarters were close to each other. They weren’t sure where Ryan ended up.

“I don’t know about all of this,” Geoff said. “It all seems…I don’t like it. I don’t trust it.”

“Neither do I,” Jack agreed. “But we need to keep calm. We have no firm proof yet, and we don’t know if we can afford outright war.” Before their conversation could continue further, the door opened, and one of Felix’s guards stood on the other side.

“Dinner, sirs,” he said, bowing. “The King is expecting you.”

“Better not keep our host waiting,” Jack grumbled, and they both headed down to the banquet hall. Most of the court was gathered there, though Geoff noticed that Ryan was absent.

“Now before we begin,” Felix began, rising from his seat and spreading out his hands. “How about we have some entertainment.” He clapped and something was wheeled out into the middle of the room, what looked to be a rectangular shape covered in a thick black sheet.

“Entertainment?” Geoff asked, eyes narrowing. “What sort of entertainment, Felix? I’m not in the mood for what you’re rumored to enjoy.” Felix only shrugged, walking away from his seat and towards the new object.

“It’s only a prisoner. He’s of high status in the Kingdom of Chorus and we have just recently captured him. So I thought, why not show our guest king how the good people of Chorus treat those who try to harm us?” Geoff saw Jack twitch and he felt a twinge of sympathy. Something felt off and Geoff wished Ryan was by his side, or at least that he knew where the dragon-man was. Geoff shook his head, focusing back in on what Felix was saying.

“What was that?” He asked. “I didn’t hear what you said.”

“I said,” Felix began, not seeming put off that the other king wasn’t listening to him. “That I think you may recognize my prisoner, Geoff. He’s rather famous around these parts, if I do say so myself. I’m actually a bit surprised we caught him. His reputation does proceed it.”

“Geoff…” Jack breathed as Geoff’s breath caught in his throat, both of them catching the shift in word choice.

God no, Geoff prayed, hoping beyond hope that whatever that object was it wouldn’t contain what he feared. Yet, sure enough, when Felix threw off the sheet Geoff’s worst nightmare was realized. Beneath it was a clear glass container with flecks of black throughout and an set of dispensers at the top. Within the glass prison was Ryan, who for what it was worth was trying to force his way out. He paused in his struggles when he saw Geoff, the dragon-man’s eyes locking with those of his king.

“He’s been trying to break free since we captured him,” Felix said. “I’m surprised he hasn’t realized it’s hopeless by now. This glass is tempered with obsidian and enchanted by the finest mages in all of Chorus. Even your strength cannot break it, beast.”

It looked to Geoff as though Ryan had said “fuck you” but no sounds came from the box. Ryan resumed his struggles, bracing himself against one side while trying pushing against the other, only to have nothing happen. Geoff clenched and unclenched his fist, mind trying to find a solution. From what he could tell Felix was telling the truth about the glass’ resilience, for Geoff had seen far sturdier looking substances give way under Ryan’s strength.

“What is the meaning of this, King?” Jack spat, his body trembling with a barely contained rage and the title coming out more as a curse than a sign of respect.

“I am a king,” Felix said, a rather cruel smirk crossing his lips as he stood in front of the struggling dragon-man. “And as king I have the right to punish those who commit crimes while within my kingdom. Otherwise there would be nothing but chaos.”

“What crimes?” Geoff growled, his eyes darting from the other king to his trapped knight, who was still trying his hardest to break free of the enchanted box. “What has he possibly done?” Felix only smiled, pulling out a scroll.

“I’m glad you asked,” he said, unrolling it. “It’s quite a list. Sir James Ryan Haywood, Knight of King Geoff, you stand accused of the following crimes against the Kingdom of Chorus. Murder. Accessory to Murder. Theft. Accessory to Theft. Trespassing. Arson.”

“Bullshit!” Geoff said, standing up. “He hasn’t done any of that.”

“Oh but he has, Geoffrey,” Felix corrected. “He has killed countless numbers of my soldiers and stolen vast amounts of my land. He has crossed the boarder unlawfully and has assisted you and your knights in raids.”

“Under my orders!” Geoff argued. “You should be punishing me!” Felix smirked.

“I am.” He continued to read off the crimes, including how being a dragon was unlawful in this kingdom. “Sir James Ryan Haywood,” he concluded, rolling up the scroll and putting it away as he drew an arrow, aiming at a button just above the box, connected to the two dispenser. “For these crimes and others against the Kingdom of Chorus I, King Felix, sentence you to death by drowning.” He let the arrow fly and it struck the button dead on, causing the box to begin to fill with water.

“No!” Geoff shouted, and Jack’s hand was at his sword in an instant. But they were surrounded by Felix’s archers, and neither could act without being struck dead in a second.


End file.
